Something in the Air
by CrashandBurnFics
Summary: When author Schuyler "Skye" Schmidt moves to Sunset Valley, teenage Bella finds herself infatuated with Skye and swears that no living being will keep her from the eccentric, yet charismatic woman - however an unliving being may have something to say about that.
1. A New Town

"Thanks so much," Skye said, closing the door behind the movers with a polite wave. She leaned back against it and wiped the sweat from her brow. She was exhausted, having spent the better part of her day helping the small moving crew tote boxes and furniture from room to room in her new house. She'd moved to a new town roughly a few thousand miles away from where she grew up. She was looking for some inspiration. A change.

Skye was a fairly short woman with an athletic build. Her short black hair hung down around her chin, partially obscuring her piercing violet-blue eyes. Her skin was pale, almost alabaster, a stark contrast from everyone else who resided in this town, and she felt as though she stuck out quite a bit.

Skye looked out her window, down the long winding path that lead into Sunset Valley. The town always seemed so busy, so she was thankful that she had purchased a house way up on the hill. She had great views and even lived ocean front. Sure, she didn't have much yard space for gardening, but she'd make the best of it. She walked to her fridge and opened it up. It was empty.

"What was I expecting, the food fairy to just bless me with dinner? I just moved in today. I guess that means I'm going into town."


	2. New Faces

Up in the branches of an old oak tree overlooking the park was a lanky teenage girl curled up with a book. Her skin was tan, her eyes were hazel, and her hair was very long and black, hanging in loose curls over her shoulders. She looked to be a little tomboyish, but with a certain elegance in her face. A rotten apple whizzed by her left ear, breaking her concentration. She didn't even look up from her book, though, and seemed to be completely unsurprised.

"BELLA." A tall boy yelled from below her, readying another apple.

"Michael, if you hit me with a rotten apple, I swear to God I will kick your as-"

"Mom says you need to come home for dinner by sunset." He said, spinning the apple in his hands. "That's in like, 20 minutes."

"Yeah, okay." Bella said, waving dismissively. She turned her full attention back to her book. Just then, SPLAT! A rotten apple exploded against the back of her book, sending fermented chunks of fruit flying into her hair, on her face, and onto her chest.

"MICHAEL I WARNED YOU!" She began to move as though she were going to jump from the branches, but her leg got caught in the crook of a branch, and in a few seconds found herself inverted and certainly heading for a faceplant on the not-so-soft ground below.

"Woah, woah. I got'cha." A voice said, catching Bella before she hit the ground. However, Bella's rescuer seemed to lose her footing, and then they fell to the ground in a tangled mess of arms and legs.

"Oh, I'm sorry!" Bella said, scrambling to her feet. "I must have almost fell right on your hea- Hey, I don't recognize you. Are you new here?"

"Yeah, actually, I just moved here today." Skye said, getting to her feet. "Are you okay? I thought you were going to eat dirt there after that kid ran off."

"Yeah, that's my brother. He hit my book with a rotten appl-Oh no, my book!" She bent over, picking up her book, which seemed to be saturated in fermented apple juice. Bella's eyes seemed to tear up a little. "Oh... He ruined it. It's one of my favorites..."

"Lemmie see it." Skye reached over grabbing the book from Bella. "'The Warlock of Palladia', eh? I think that's by Matt! What if I told you that I could get you an autographed book to replace this one? Would that make it better?"

"W-wait, what? How do you know Matt Goss?" Bella said, her eyes widening.

"Oh, we have the same publisher, actually. I'm an author by the way. I write science-fiction and the like. I guess I'm kind of a nerd," Skye laughed. "But I guess it's come in useful this time!"

"W-whats your name? I'm Bella." Bella reached out a shaky hand, and Skye took it and shook it firmly.

"Schuyler Schmidt - Skye for short."

"Wait, you're Schuyler Schmidt? You write all those books about terraforming and colonizing space! I've read a few of them, they're so good!"

"Hah, yep! That's me."

"Oh... I wanna stand here and ask you a million questions, but I have to get home. I don't live that close and dinner is going to be ready and ... Oh!"

"Do you wanna ride home?" Skye asked, motioning to her car. "I just bought groceries, so I should really get them back to my 'fridge before they go back to begin with."

Bella paused for a second. She was sixteen and felt as though she could easily make her own decisions, but part of her wondered if this woman would kidnap her. Her mother always warned her about talking to strangers and told her to never get into someone else's car. But she meant men, right? What could this woman possibly do to her.

"Uhhh... Sure?" Bella said, shrugging. She pitched her now-ruined book into the garbage.

The two girls walked off to a bright yellow sports car together and hopped inside. Skye smiled at Bella, and something inside of Bella's stomach tightened. Was she feeling butterflies? No, of course not. She must just be nervous. She'd never ridden with a stranger before. Yes, that must be it. She was nervous.

Before she knew it, the car ride was over, and she and Skye said their parting ways. Bella stood on the sidewalk outside of her house and watched the yellow sports car drive off into the sunset until she could no longer see it.

"Bella?" Her mother said, walking out onto the porch. "Who was that?"

"Oh, just a friend. Her names Skye..." Bella turned and walked into the house. Her mother shrugged and followed her inside.


End file.
